Meet our Board of Directors

Kristin graduated from IUPUI with an undergraduate degree in social work and a minor in psychology and received a masters degree from IUPUI in social work with a concentration in organizational leadership. At the start of her career, she had the privilege of working with a number of immigrant families to assist in connecting them with resources to thrive in their new home. She soon found herself working in community engagement and lobbying work around policies that benefit children involved in the child welfare system and families who are under-resourced in our community. Kristin worked to advance positive legislation at the state and federal level through lobbying work with Children’s Bureau, Inc, Indiana Coalition for Human Services, and the Children’s Coalition.

She currently is an associate faculty member at Indiana University’s School of Social Work at the Indianapolis campus teaching in areas of social welfare policy, organizational development and leadership, and serving as a field liaison for Masters of Social Work students. For the past 13 years, in this role, Kristin has mentored and taught a number of immigrant students who are working to pursue their dreams of contributing to their community. Over the past two decades, she has listened and been inspired by the stories of the immigrant families and students that have crossed her path. These experiences have demonstrated the hardships and the joys that are unique to our immigrant neighbors, and at the same time, highlighted our shared humanity.

She is honored to have the opportunity to work alongside the partners, immigrant community members, and other supporters to continue the essential work of the coalition.

Kent is an attorney practicing in Indianapolis and graduated from:

School of Business, Indiana University, Bloomington (Bachelor of Science, 1968), Indiana University School of Law, Indianapolis (Doctor of Jurisprudence, magna cum laude, 1973), Christian Theological Seminary, Indianapolis, Indiana (Master of Theological Studies, 2001)

​In addition to COIN, he has been involved with:
Co-founder and vice president Coalition for Our Immigrant Neighbors, Inc. (COIN)
Vice President, Jewish Community Center, Indianapolis
Member, Board of Trustees, Christian Theological Seminary, Indianapolis
Volunteer Attorney, Protective Order Pro Bono Project of Greater Indianapolis
Volunteer Guardian Ad Litem/Court Appointed Special Advocate
Past President, Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, Indianapolis
Former Chairperson, Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention, Inc., Indianapolis
Past Trustee, Indiana State Museum and Historical Sites Board of Directors

Personal Life:

Kent has been married to attorney/author Judith Vale Newton since 1968, and the couple has two children and three grandchildren.

Kent was a Lieutenant with the United States Navy. He was assigned to sea duty in the Mediterranean Sea and the Arctic Ocean and served at naval bases located in Newport, Rhode Island; Norfolk, Virginia; and Washington, D.C.

Ken Owen is a trusted veteran in the communications industry, having spent nearly two decades as an award-winning television anchor and reporter before joining his alma mater, DePauw University, as its chief external communicator. Today, he is the principal of KO Communications & Strategies, working with clients in business and higher education. He continues to oversee DePauw’s Ubben Lecture Series, which has brought renowned individuals such as Malala Yousafzai, Tony Blair, David Brooks and Mikhail Gorbachev to the Greencastle campus. He also serves as vice president of Indiana Broadcast Pioneers.

Owen covered a wide range of newsmakers during his career, including Ronald Reagan, Desmond Tutu, Paul McCartney, Lena Horne, Gerald Ford, Tony Bennett, Jeane Kirkpatrick, and Billy Graham, whom Owen accompanied to the then-Soviet Union in 1988 for the millennium of the Russian Orthodox Church. The resulting documentary was a finalist for a national IRIS Award, while several other organizations recognized Owen’s journalism over the years.
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​”Owen is one of the real talents in local TV news — a good, honorable reporter and trustworthy anchor,” wrote the Indianapolis Star’s Marc Allan in late 2000, when Owen announced plans to leave television. “He never tried to sell the sizzle if there was no steak.”

Alfonzo has a bachelor degree in Administration with a master’s in Foreign Trade. He worked with the Customs Service for 24 years in his native country Venezuela. He immigrated to the United States in 2015 and has been a resident of Indiana ever since. He is always willing to help the Hispanic community, both in his work and in his time as a volunteer, he has served as an interpreter between Spanish and English speakers.

Anna Spoerle Cook is the daughter of an immigrant father. Anna earned her B.S. degree in Elementary Education from Indiana University–Bloomington and has an M.S. degree in Education Administration from Butler University. She also holds a Secondary Administration and Supervision credential from the University of Indianapolis.

Anna is a veteran educator with over 35 years of experience in the school systems of Indianapolis. She has served as a teacher, principal, and district-level administrator, where she was the Director of Literacy, Federal Programs, High Ability, and English Language Learners.

Anna has been the Midwest Literacy Specialist for Scholastic Inc. and a Professional Learning Specialist at Keep Indiana Learning before starting her company, Collaborative Educators LLC. She currently works as an educational consultant, specializing in collaborating and working with educators in grades K–8.

Brenda immigrated to the United States from Togo in West Africa. Coming from a French speaking country, she faced the double challenge of becoming fluent in English and assimilating a new culture, all while attending college and working full-time.

She started her professional career as a journalist in Togo, before spending several years in advertising and marketing in multiple industries in Indiana and California.

No longer able to ignore her calling and passion for lending a hand and solving complex problems, Brenda returned to school to earn a law degree and fulfill her lifelong dream of providing competent and compassionate representation to clients in the areas of immigration law, family law, and business law.

Brenda’s unique background allows her to effectively communicate with her clients in multiple languages including English, French, Mina, Ewe, Fon and Gun.

Her personal experience gives her a keen understanding of her clients’ circumstances, allowing her to work collaboratively with her clients to devise effective solutions to the challenges they face.

​Brenda contributed to the successful resolution of several landmark cases, earning her an Indiana Super Lawyers Rising Star award four years in a row.

​In January 2022, she took a leap of faith and opened her own law firm, EBK Law Group. She focuses her practice on immigration law, family law, and business transactions and litigation.

She is delighted to have joined the Board of COIN, to support them in their endeavors and continue to give back to her community.

Christine Kung’u, is a leader with over a decade of experience in developing and implementing strategic initiatives, partnerships, in the area of interpersonal violence awareness, prevention and intervention. A lawyer from Kenya, Christine has worked with survivors of Interpersonal violence both in Kenya and U.S. She recently served as the Assistant Director of Interpersonal Violence Prevention and Response at IUPUI, providing direct support for survivors of sexual and relationship violence.
Christine is excited to be part of the COIN, to help in its goal towards increasing access to information, collaboration, resources, and connection to multiple local organizations committed to providing legal, and other services for immigrants.

Lacy was raised in Speedway, Indiana. She is a graduate of Speedway High School. She attended college at Marquette University where she double majored in Political Science and Spanish for the Professions. She studied abroad in San Luis Potosí, Mexico and attended Tecnológico de Monterrey Campus San Luis Potosí. Lacy started working in the immigration field as she attended law school at Indiana University McKinney School of Law. She opened her own immigration law practice in 2015 and then launched Panyard Holton Immigration, LLC in 2020 in her hometown of Speedway.

Maureen is a Psychotherapist and Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in the State of Indiana. She has a B.S. degree in Gerontology from the University of Massachusetts and a Master’s in Psychotherapy and Faith from Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis. She has a private practice and is also an affiliate provider for Community Health Network EAP. In addition, she is an Approved Clinical Supervisor for practicum students training to be therapists in the Clinical Mental Health Counselor program at Christian Theological Seminary.

She has always been an active member of her church denomination Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) through serving on local, regional and national boards and committees. Some of these included:Trustee, Christian Theological Seminary Board member, Disciples Peace Fellowship Chair, Search Committee, Downey Avenue Christian Church Voting Delegate, Regional Assembly, General Assembly Board member, Central Christian Church Anti-Racism Transformational Team, Central Christian Church

Maureen has also served on the Board of Electors and Board of Directors of Enfoque Ixcan; whose mission is to ensure that the people of the Ixcan region of Guatemala have access to vision and eye health care and eye health education.

In 2009 she created and developed a Mental Wellness Program and served as the Coordinator/Therapist at Exodus Refugee Immigration, Inc. in Indianapolis. Exodus is a refugee resettlement agency that provides services to refugee newcomers from the point of arrival to self-sufficiency.

As a therapist in private practice, she has worked with refugees from a variety of different countries who have experienced trauma and violence and have had to flee their countries of origin. She has worked with transracial adoptees (TRA’s) who have experienced and continue to suffer from trauma, loss and identity issues due to their unique experiences growing up in the United States. As a TRA herself who emigrated to the U.S. from Hong Kong as a baby; she is able to draw from her own personal experience and integrate it into her clinical work.